Earnhardt family goes into business

Wednesday, September 13, 2006
By KATHY JUMPER
Real Estate Editor

For 35 minutes the Earnhardt family sat patiently under the bright glare of television camera lights with 30
cameras flashing and clicking just 2 feet from their faces -- life in the fast lane on Tuesday morning for the
grown siblings of the late racing legend Dale Earnhardt Sr.
But this wasn't just any news conference. It marked the first joint business venture for Dale Earnhardt Jr., his
brother, Kerry Earnhardt, and their sister Kelley Earnhardt Elledge.

"This will be our first opportunity as a family," Kerry Earnhardt said. "And it may be our last," he added,
laughing.

The Earnhardt name stamped on the project was icing on the cake for investors in Gulf Coast Entertainment
LLC, who plan to build a four-track Motorsports park with entertainment, restaurants and hotels in south
Alabama. Actually, it was more like the icing, the cherry and the kitchen sink for investors, who reportedly
jumped into the deal when the Earnhardt name surfaced.

The name alone brought fans out of the woodwork for Tuesday's event at the Arthur R. Outlaw Mobile
Convention Center. As media arrived to interview the Earnhardts, so did the race fans. In fact, armed with
cameras and pens, some fans could have passed for media, except the red T-shirts emblazoned with Dale
Earnhardt Jr. were hard to hide.

Even the media swarmed like bees around honey when set loose to talk to Earnhardt Jr. A sea of hands
gripping microphones and tape recorders flew in front of his face, while fans formed a long line, hoping to get
him to autograph a hat, shirt or even a bare hand.

His sister, Kelley, her arm in a cast after a fall involving a dog, stood with the fans, smiling and promising them
Earnhardt Jr. would visit as soon as he could get free.  Her brother likes the nickname "Junior" the best of all, he said as he stood facing the crowd that grew closer
with each minute.  But Junior, 32, didn't seem to mind the adoring crush.  "I'm a race car driver. Richard Petty and the other drivers before us taught us the mannerisms and etiquette,"
when dealing with fans, he said. Besides, he said, "I can't just hide in the house."

The pressure of living up to the legacy of his father, who won more than 75 races during his career, is
something he has learned to accept.  "I don't think about others' expectations of me," he said. "If I don't meet my expectations, then I'm
disappointed. I can't please everybody all the time. As long as I'm in line with my sponsors, I'm doing fine."

He was born and raised around cars, and if he wasn't a race car driver, "I'd be a service mechanic in a
dealership," he said. "I like working as a mechanic," something he did before he raced cars.

He said he is excited about designing the oval track for the Alabama Motorsports Park that will carry his name.

"I want to build a fun race track where I can come down and race," he said.
Race or practice?

"I wouldn't be a part of it if I couldn't race it myself," he said.
© 2006 The Mobile Register